WASHINGTON, Feb. 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Responsible Battery Coalition (RBC) today welcomed the Trump Administration's launch of "Project Vault," a major new initiative established with the Export-Import Bank of the United States to create a strategic critical minerals stockpile designed to protect American manufacturers — including the U.S. battery industry — from global supply disruptions.

Batteries are essential to nearly every aspect of American life and national security. From the starter batteries that power every car and truck on the road to the power backup systems that support critical infrastructure and military readiness, the strength of the battery supply chain is inseparable from the strength of the U.S. industrial base.

Project Vault will provide a new mechanism to procure and store strategically important minerals used in batteries and other advanced technologies, such as lead, antimony, cobalt, graphite, silicon, copper, and nickel. Project Vault will help ensure manufacturers have reliable access to key inputs even during periods of volatility or geopolitical pressure.

"Project Vault is exactly the kind of serious, industrial-strength action America needs right now," said Adam Muellerweiss, President of the Responsible Battery Coalition. "Even two years ago, this idea would have been unthinkable. The Trump Administration has made this a national security priority, driving multiple agencies to coordinate a whole-of-government approach and engaging the private sector to make this possible. This is a generational investment in American dominance and critical mineral independence."

According to the White House, Project Vault will launch with $12 billion in seed funding to help insulate manufacturers from supply shocks and destabilizing price swings. The program will create a strategic backstop similar in concept to the nation's emergency petroleum reserves.

"Americans remember why we created the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. When supply chains break down — as we saw during the Oil Embargo — the impact is immediate, and consumers feel it," said Steve Christensen, Executive Director of the Responsible Battery Coalition. "Batteries are the next choke point. Without secure access to critical minerals, trucks can't move, auto plants can't ship cars, and production lines shut down. Project Vault helps ensure Americans are never held hostage to adversarial supply chains for something this essential."

"China has spent decades cornering the market on critical mineral processing and using that dominance as economic and geopolitical leverage. The United States cannot afford to keep depending on supply chains controlled by Beijing. Project Vault helps ensure America can sustain production, support the defense base, collaborate with allies and withstand disruptions," said Major General Bill Crane (Ret.), Chair of the RBC's Critical Minerals Leadership Roundtable.

RBC looks forward to working with policymakers, manufacturers, and national security leaders to ensure Project Vault delivers lasting benefits for the nation's energy and defense future.

About the Responsible Battery Coalition

The RBC is a coalition of companies, academics, and organizations committed to the responsible management of the batteries of today and tomorrow. Members include: Advance Auto Parts, AutoZone, Capital City Ventures, Clarios, ENTEK, FedEx, Honda, and O'Reilly Auto Parts. RBC was created in April 2017 to advance the responsible production, transport, sale, use, reuse, recycling, and resource recovery of transportation, industrial, and stationary batteries and other energy storage devices. For more information: https://www.responsiblebatterycoalition.org/

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SOURCE Responsible Battery Coalition